Virgin Mobile in South Africa

In a recent post entitled “Virgin Money in South Africa” I mentioned some of the benefits and features of getting a Virgin Money Credit Card. Well, Mr Branson and his Virgins are still taking over South Africa. And it seems like a good thing.

Virgin Mobile is a supposed answer to the current, somewhat monopolistic state of affairs of the cellphone industry in South Africa. Anyway, what do I think of Virgin Mobile? I think it’s good. Not perfect, still expensive, but it’s DEFINITELY “cheaper” than the other options (being Cellc, MTN and Vodacom).

Here is how I think it’s cheaper:

– You are not tied to a contract in the normal sense. From what I can see, you pay off your phone interest free over 6, 12 or 24 months. If suddenly you decide to change contracts, and you have spare cash, you can pay off your phone and leave. Unlike the other service providers where you pay off your phone, and then through your nose for the lost life savings they won’t be able to take from you

– You know what you are paying for. Seems insignificant? Lucky you. The most irritating things in today’s advertising is the asterisk and the phrase “Terms and conditions apply”. Only problem is, sometimes that asterisk doesn’t even LEAD to the full disclosure. It appears to with Virgin Mobile.

– You don’t have to pay for things you don’t want. Like Itemised billing or Caller Id. On Vodacom, they have GREAT specials. You can get a phone for only R39 a month*. SEE THAT ASTERISK!!! It means you still have to pay extra for Caller ID and Itemised Billing. Which are compulsory.

So, all in all, having a Virgin Mobile contract might work out to roughly the same as your current MTN contract, but at least you know what you’re getting, and you’re not chained to the chair as well…

Let me know what you think of Virgin Mobile…